Updated Tool Now Available to Predict Prostate Cancer Spread

Prostate cancer experts at Johns Hopkins Hospital in
Baltimore, MD, have developed an updated version of the
Partin Tables, a tool to help men diagnosed with prostate
cancer and their doctors to better assess their chance of a
surgical cure. The updated tool is published in the British
Journal of Urology International. This represents the third
update of the data.

“The first thing most men want to know when they learn
they have prostate cancer is their prognosis – whether it
can be cured,” says Alan W. Partin, MD, PhD, professor and
director of Urology at the Johns Hopkins University School
of Medicine and creator of the Partin Tables. “The Partin
Tables are a statistical model to show the probability that the
cancer is confined to the prostate and therefore is likely to
be cured with surgery.”

The model is based on an individual’s prostate specific
antigen (PSA) level, Gleason score (a number from 2 to 10
that estimates the aggressiveness of tumors removed during
a biopsy), and clinical stage (the extent to which a tumor
can be felt during a digital exam).

“ We now have a better understanding
of intermediate risk and see that
more men now fall into that category,
instead of the higher risk group.”

John B. Eifler, MD, the lead author of the article who
worked with Partin on the revision, says the new Partin
Tables show that certain categories of men who were
previously not thought to have a good prognosis actually
could be cured with surgery. “We now have a better
understanding of intermediate risk and see that more men
now fall into that category, instead of the higher risk group,”
says Eifler.

For example, men with a Gleason score of 8 and above
previously were not thought to be good candidates for
surgery because of the likelihood that the cancer had
spread. The new data show a higher probability of a cure
with surgery even if a man’s Gleason score is 8. Scores of
9 and 10 are still considered high risk, indicating that the
cancer likely has spread. The researchers also found that
having a PSA level of 10 and above was a better cut-off for
predicting the spread of disease compared to lower levels.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

To access the updated Partin Tables, go to
urology.jhu.edu/prostate/partintables.php. By inputting your PSA, Gleason score, and clinical stage
results, and clicking on “find results,” you can see the percentage chance that
the cancer is confined to the prostate, has migrated to the edge of the gland,
has invaded the seminal vesicles, or has spread to the lymph nodes.

This article was published in Coping® with Cancer magazine,
March/April
2013.